Tag: NFC

While I am not a New Yorker (I live in the quiet mountains of Colorado), when I do go to Gotham I always pre-load a MetroCard.  The card is your ticket, literally, to getting around the various subway lines of the city.  It was introduced in the 1990s, replacing the coin token system, and it has been a reasonable way of getting through the system.  But New York’s Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) also feels the cards are outmoded for today’s world.

MTA has thus turned to NFC, or Near Field Communication.  Through a $573 million contract, the MetroCard will be replaced with NFC at turnstiles.  This will allow users with NFC enabled credit and debit cards as well as Android Pay, Samsung Pay and Apple Pay users to pay for a fare simply by tapping their phone to the terminal.  The new system will be very similar to the system that is used by the London Transit Authority for the Underground in London.

The new system will begin rolling out in late 2018 and by 2023, the MetroCard will be phased out completely.

Samsung has announced that their contactless payment service, Samsung Pay, is now available in Australia.  Australia becomes the fourth country that the service has been enabled, joining the ranks of the United States, South Korea and Spain.  As you may remember, the service is also coming to Singapore on Friday of this week.  While the countries the service is available is limited, Samsung has had a lot of success so far with the service, claiming some 5 million users of Samsung Pay are already registered across the available countries.

“Today’s launch of Samsung Pay offers more than a secure and convenient way for Samsung smartphone owners to pay,” said Prasad Gokhale, Vice President, Mobile Division, Samsung Australia. “It’s the next development for Australians who use their smartphone as the central device to live, organise and enjoy their lives.

“Australia is a market of early technology adopters and by providing a platform open to all partners, ranging from government to financial institutions and retailers, while upholding the highest standards of security and data privacy, Samsung is fueling the transition to a truly digital wallet.”

Users of select Samsung devices in Australia can start using the service today.